The Escalade Hybrid might feature eco technology, but few will believe it

It drives very much like ‘truck’ 4x4s made elsewhere in the world used to, before monocoque construction and advanced chassis technology made them so much better behaved. And yet, even with an American truck this old-school, petrol-electric propulsion is now part of the mix.

Both of those manufacturers, however, chose to mate their fuel-saving electric tech to an efficient V6 engine (we’re talking relatively here). Not so Cadillac. Instead, it has kept a mighty V8 under the Escalade’s bonnet, albeit one reduced in capacity from the non-hybrid version’s 6162cc to a marginally more parsimonious 5967cc.

The petrol-electric Escalade uses GM’s two-mode hybrid system, which mostly operates as a CVT but also has four fixed gears that are used when the Caddy’s a-haulin’. And given the vehicle’s 2.7 tonnes, it’s easy to see the sense of harnessing its kinetic energy when coasting and braking.

The electricity generated is stored in a 300-volt battery stored under the middle row of seats – the Escalade swallows it almost unnoticed – which propels it at low speeds. The Atkinson-cycle 332bhp 6.0-litre V8 has automatic stop-start, and can also operate on four cylinders to save fuel.

Inevitably, though, the Escalade is truck-like to drive in both low-speed manoeuvring and cornering, though for a vehicle almost as big as a house it gets around bends with less drama than you’d expect. This is a tall, ponderous-looking vehicle, and that’s how it feels on the road. The car’s titanic mass makes performance well below the order of the modern fast 4x4, too: the 2.6-tonne 6.2-litre standard model takes 6.7sec to crack 62mph, while the 2.8-tonne hybrid takes 8.4.

More disappointing than this is the near-ceaseless vibro-massage accorded to your lower legs in both cars - the consequence of riding on 22-inch wheels with 45-section tyres.

Yet for all its crudities, there’s something fascinating about the way this complex beast goes about its business, and there’s no question that you get a great view out from a vehicle this vast.

If you want an Escalade it’s probably only an Escalade that will do, in which case your choice is whether to buy hybrid or not. A part-electric drivetrain makes the car marginally more defensible, though many may judge its plentiful ‘hybrid’ badging at best ludicrous, at worst offensive. Plus, the Escalade feels like the gussied-up, workaday Chevrolet Tahoe that it is, with an interior finish vastly adrift of any premium SUV’s.